Aquaculture

The glossary of aquaculture is a multidisciplinary and multilingual glossary containing more than 2600 terms, definitions, related terms, synonyms and images.

This glossary has been prepared by the Aquaculture Branch of the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, under the coordination of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Officer Valerio Crespi, and with the collaboration of the Meeting Planning and Language Support Group. Its contents are primarily based on existing textbooks and glossaries, in particular those already prepared within the various Branches of the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department. Terms pertaining to specific aquaculture subject areas have been validated by internal and external FAO experts.

The primary objectives of this glossary are:

to serve as a reference to fish farmers, consultants, administrators, policy makers, developers, engineers, agriculturists, economists, environmentalists and any other actor interested in aquaculture; and

to facilitate communication among experts and scientists involved in aquaculture research and development.

The glossary is also published in hardcopy and CD-ROM. Users are invited to send comments and suggestions by e-mail to: Glossary-Aquaculture@fao.org

The online glossary is presented in the following format: terms, definitions, aquaculture subject areas, synonyms, related terms, images and information sources. In addition, there are two links with Abbreviations and Acronyms and Measurement Units.

Terms

The glossary terms are presented in alphabetical order. British English has been adopted rather than American English. Any alternative spellings, unusual plural forms (pl.), and/or the generally accepted abbreviations/acronyms are provided as synonyms.

Definitions

The suggested definitions have been selected from available published information, with priority given to published FAO definitions whenever possible. Multiple meanings for the same term are indicated by placing (a), (b), (c), etc. either after the term [e.g. Bank (a), Bank (b)] or within the definition, as in the case of the term "barrage". In so doing, the user is advised when a term has different equivalents in other languages.

Relatedterms

Related terms are also indicated in the glossary as well as antonyms, terms which mean the opposite of the term itself, for example "alkaline" is related to "acid".

Term 2, 3, 4 (Synonyms)

Terms 2, 3, 4, etc. are synonyms of the first term with the same or a similar meaning.

Subject areas

Twenty-one broad aquaculture subject areas have been defined. Each term has been classified in one of these areas.

Sources

The information source(s) from which each definition has been obtained is provided for each term.

Images

Whenever available, clickable images are presented in thumbnail format at the top of the screen.